Prime Minister Andy Burnham has faced backlash over plans to send HMRC valuation agents into UK homes to assess whether they are liable for the mansion tax. The move has been condemned as "un-British" and representative of a "nanny state" from the Government.
Under the proposed plans, HMRC agents would visit homes to determine if the property's value exceeds £2 million, making it subject to the mansion tax. Homeowners who refuse the inspection could face fines of up to £200.
MP slams 'extraordinary' plans
Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat criticised the plans, describing them as "extraordinary" and arguing that they could only come from "a true socialist".
Speaking to GB News, he said: "It's pretty extraordinary, isn't it? The idea that you're going to have somebody knocking on the door of every house in the UK and trying to check out whether your house is worth a pound more than your neighbours'."
"The idea is so un-British, it is so nanny state, and it is so interventionist state."
Concerns over fairness and enforcement
The MP also described the proposal as "completely insane" and unfair, adding: "We all know what's going to happen. We're going to have people who are going to get arrested for not allowing some jobsworth from Whitehall to snoop around their house."
He continued: "And how is that fair? Englishmen, Scotsmen, Welshmen and Irishmen should not be faced with the bureaucratic hand of the state trying to get through their front door to tell them what they owe. It's completely ridiculous."
Mansion tax details and impact
The Mansion Tax, or High Value Council Tax Surcharge (HVCTS), is set to take effect in April 2028. Homeowners, rather than occupiers, will be liable for the surcharge and will continue to pay their existing Council Tax alongside it.
According to HM Treasury, fewer than 1% of properties in England are expected to exceed the £2 million threshold. Revaluations are planned to be conducted every five years.
